GTA Meeting Minutes

Minutes from GTA meeting 11/17/2009

Submitted by Michael Campsmith, GTA Secretary/Activities Director

17 members and 3 Triumphs attended the GTA monthly meeting on a drizzly evening at the Norcross Station Café. Shawn Tarleton drove up just as the meeting disbanded, but I still counted him and his car.

Meeting was called to order at 7:15 PM by outgoing Director Ashford Little.

Reminders:
Need to get your payment in for the Christmas Party as soon as possible; if you beat the November 25 deadline you pay the subsidized price of $15 per adult/$7.50 per child. After the deadline you pay full price: $35 per adult/$20 per child.

Annual club dues renewals are due. Cost of membership is $30 and can be paid to Sue Hurst, GTA Treasurer.

Old Business-
Halloween Car Show was in Chattanooga on October 31. The group from the GTA included 6 cars: 4 Triumphs, 1 MG, and 1 Honda. All the GTA Triumphs won trophies, including Hermann and Jeri Schaller winning Best in Show. Congratulations to the trophy winners and all attendees as well. Weather wasn't the best on Saturday, but all commented on how much fun was had.

Patti Fries said some people were in costume, with the theme being the era of your car-1960's, 1970's, etc. She said there were some people you absolutely would not recognize-hopefully pictures and an article will explain the mystery.

There was discussion on increasing GTA participation at this show. It is an event close to home, so in the future we hope more people from the GTA will attend.

Cloudland Canyon tour did not happen on November 14; too bad because the weather was beautiful. This event was listed in the GTA calendar, but no one ever stepped up to work out the details. This lead to a discussion of how to increase member input/participation for events in 2010. See more details under New Business.

DTT (name withheld to protect the guilty). This "relaxed" drive to St. Mary's was held a few weeks ago. About 50 cars participated, including several GTA members. Thankfully no monetary donations to local police departments were made during the drive. Unfortunately Joe Earnest had the motor go out on his Dolomite; no word yet on how expensive the fix will be. In 2008 Ashford won in his TR6 and repeated as champion again this year, albeit in a non-British car. Even if you can't participate in the drive it is worthwhile to show up at the start to shake your head at the motley group of incorrigibles.

New Business-
Announcement of officers for 2010:
Newsletter Editor: Tony Graham
Treasurer: Sue Hurst
Webmaster: Toby Holden
Activities Director: Michael Campsmith
Membership Director: Gary Wilmerding
The above-named members volunteered to fill those club positions. The webmaster and newsletter editor need content to fill up their respective products-so if you go to an event please remember to take pictures and write up an article for posting. Material is always welcome.

There are still two officer positions open-Director and Secretary. Ashford discussed responsibilities of Director and didn't have a firm idea about the number of hours per month needed to be Director-likely can take only a few or many more depending on what ideas the Director has. The recommendation is to involve more members for planning events so that no single person or small group is saddled with all responsibilities for making things happen. New people bring fresh ideas and keep our club vital. Ashford thanked the club for the opportunity to serve as GTA Director, but now it is time to pass the torch. By the end of the Christmas Party there will definitely be a new GTA Director-Ashford has spoken.

Michael will start planning out the 2010 activities calendar and will look to club members for ideas and events. More ideas = more events = more chance to have fun in our little British cars. Michael is committed to taking the lead, but won't be doing it all; so if you want to see something happen, make it happen.

Getting on the GTA email list. This really isn't new business, but needs reiteration due to confusion about who is and isn't on the email distribution list for GTA communications. The former newsletter editor had an email distribution list for sending out the link to the newsletter. However, just because you receive that link by email does not mean you are on the GTA email communication list. You have to actively join the communication list, and here is how:

Here is the link to join the communication list: http://autox.team.net/mailman/listinfo/gta. Put this in your web browser and follow the instructions; you must actively join the list by submitting your email address and then receiving a confirmation back. Email is really the most efficient way to reach members with up-to-the-minute information on events, etc. and if you are not on the communication list you are missing out on lots of good stuff.

Upcoming events
GTA Christmas Party. Sunday, December 6. Location is Kurt's Biergarten, 4225 River Green Parkway, Duluth, GA 30096. Telephone (770) 497-8141. Cash bar at 5 PM, dinner starts at 6 PM. Get your money to Sue Hurst by 11/25 for discount rates. We need a minimum number of reservations to make this event happen, so get your money in now.

GTA Pub night. Tuesday, December 15. Location is Iron Horse Tavern. This takes the place of the December club meeting. Come out and enjoy a pint as we reminisce about the year gone by.

Polar Bear Run. Saturday, December 26. Information is on the GTA website. This event draws an eclectic mix of cars and is always a fan favorite.

2010 Vintage Triumph Registry National Convention. October 17-21, 2010. The GTA will be involved with the national VTR convention down on Jekyll Island. This year we are going upscale with the host hotel being the Jekyll Island Club. Ronnie Babbitt is heading up the GTA activities; our club is responsible for the banquet, so we need to form a committee and get volunteers. The event will run from Sunday through Thursday, which is a bit different schedule than other events.

Mark your calendars now-You don't want to miss this event!!

Meeting adjourned at 8:00 PM.


Minutes from GTA meeting 10/20/2009
Submitted by Michael Campsmith, GTA Secretary

16 members and 4 Triumphs attended the GTA monthly meeting on a mild October evening at the Norcross Station Café.

Meeting was called to order at 7:20 PM by Director Ashford Little (who claims he was not off fishing when he missed the last meeting).

Ashford discussed his recent clutch/transmission problems. The recommendation is to drive your car to keep those gremlins at bay.

A guest was in attendance-Greg Kimbrough. Greg described his very eclectic collection of cars, which includes a sort-of Spitfire vintage racer. Other gems(?) include a Ginetta in pieces and lots of assorted racer bits. The group concluded Greg needs to hold a garage session so the club can ooh and ahh over his toys.

This brings up another reason we need club business cards-it was a chance meeting with Stan Strickland in a parking lot that lead Greg to the club. Hopefully the business card issue can be escalated to a priority before the start of the 2010 driving season.

Old business
There was a tongue-in-cheek description of the lovely weather for the North Carolina car show on September 26 (in reality it likely rained cats and dogs). But those who went enjoyed the show despite the inclement weather.

Ashford attended the 6-Pack Trials in New Jersey the last weekend in September, although his car did not. Turnout was smaller than usual (50-60 cars) but the people are what make the event. The only known casualty was Ashford's phone, which fell overboard during the dinner cruise-an expensive proof of gravity!!

The Mystery Dinner night did not occur due to lack of participation. This lead to a discussion on how we can increase participation in our events; might even include other clubs. This needs further discussion by the club.

Upcoming events
Stan Strickland announced car show at Garden Plaza retirement home in Lawrenceville on Saturday, October 24.

Chattanooga car show October 31. This show has been getting better every year. Reports are that it is MG-centric but has attracted more Triumphs in recent years. Due to the Halloween date perhaps there will be costumes as well. So far about 4 cars are committed to making the drive; Gary Wilmerding is contact person and is leaving Friday before the show.

Cloudland Canyon drive November 14. This is in the calendar but there is no known leader, start time, or route. If anyone is willing to head this up please step forward. It was noted that the weather tends to be colder/windier up there than down in the Atlanta area, so dress accordingly.

Christmas party is the first Sunday in December (the 6th). Location is Kurt's Biergarten in Norcross. Cash bar is at 5 PM with dinner following. We need 50 people to attend, so get your payment to Sue Hurst as soon as possible, and no later than Thanksgiving.

The VTR will be held in 2010 in October next year on Jekyll Island. Host hotel is the Jekyll Island Club-sweet!! Ronnie Babbitt is heading up the GTA activities; our club is responsible for the banquet, so we need to form a committee and get volunteers. The event will run from Tuesday to Friday, which is a bit different schedule than other events. But let's put our heads together and make a great GTA contribution to this event.

New business
Herman Schaller won 3 trophies in the past month
Herman is also asking for people to submit mileage they have driven their Triumph for consideration of the "Iron Butt" award. So far only one person has given the information-may win by default.
Earl stated the GTA is now an official Triumph Register Chapter.
Toby Holden has volunteered to be new webmaster. Hugh's friend is new newsletter editor-will pass on his contact information once received. That leaves a few officer positions still to be filled-main one is Director (aka "PREZ"). Voting will take place at a future club meeting-better plan to attend so you don't get elected in abstentia.

The GTA is a volunteer organization, and as such depends on people donating their time in order to keep the club active. In short, things won't happen without member involvement. So consider giving a minimum amount of your time to keep our hobby going strong.

Meeting adjourned at 7:55 PM.